


Everything Has Changed

by denisecloyd



Series: NCT Danger Days AU [2]
Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Bad descriptions of fights, Doyoung is pretty much a celebrity but he wears a bunny mask so no one knows what he looks like, Friends to Enemies, Gen, It's almost 1am someone save me from platonic yujae hell, Jaehyun is literally a clown, Mentions of alcohol and drugs, Stabbing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-18
Updated: 2019-05-18
Packaged: 2020-03-07 14:53:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,418
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18875437
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/denisecloyd/pseuds/denisecloyd
Summary: He thought about what it would be like to live out there in the Zones, without having to worry about a curfew and taking his pills and his best friend wanting to kill people for a living.





	1. Partners for life

Yuta was 17 the first time he saw Bad Bunny. It was a rainy day – like most days in Battery City that month – and Jaehyun’s hands shook as he pulled the BCU zine out of his soaking wet schoolbag. They were in a bathroom, hoping to escape the prying eyes of their classmates. BCU content was illegal in Battery City. Being caught with that zine would make everyone label them as rebels.

The cover depicted a person in a bunny mask, holding a lilac ray gun, and the bright orange letters spelled out “Bad Bunny: an unofficial biography”. Yuta thought this “Bad Bunny” looked rather silly, but he was too nice to say so.

“Look at this asshole.” Jaehyun said as he flipped through the damp pages with a sneer. “I heard he and his little buddies killed over a thousand Draculoids.”

“I thought Draculoids were highly trained officials. How did a man in a bunny mask manage to kill so many of them?” He asked, taking a peek at one of the pages. There was a picture of Bad Bunny with three other men, each of them with a mask that covered their eyes and a brightly colored ray gun. Bad Bunny must have been their leader, judging by the different, flashier mask and the way he carried himself, like he was larger than life.

“It’s those exterminators,” He said with a scoff. “Father says they’re useless and don’t know how to lead a team. He says Bad Bunny is lucky he never had to deal with him and his Draculoids.”

“Sounds to me like your dad is full of shit.”

Jaehyun was not amused by that.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“They always say that, don’t they? ‘If I were him, I’d do things differently’. But then they never do.” He concentrated on a long paragraph, looking for a change of theme. He didn’t like it when Jaehyun got angry. “Hey, check this out. It says he was born in your neighborhood.”

“That’s embarrassing.” Jaehyun glared at the text as if he could erase it somehow. “Honestly, these so-called ‘Killjoys’ are nothing but scum. I can’t wait to start my training in dad’s unit. I can’t wait to kill them all.”

“You have weird ambitions, Jae. I just want to live a quiet life in the city. Maybe find myself a wife.”

“Aw, Yuta. I thought we were partners for life. You’re gonna replace me with a girl?”

He did his best to hold back a giggle as he punched Jaehyun in the arm. In return, Jaehyun hit him in the head with the zine.

That night, as he was hiding under his bed with the BCU zine and a flashlight, he thought about what it would be like to live out there in the Zones, without having to worry about a curfew and taking his pills and his best friend wanting to kill people for a living. He thought about Jaehyun and how he was the first one to offer his hand when an older kid made him trip in his first day of school, or how he always shared his lunch with that kid from the Lobby who couldn’t afford it. He still saw that kindness in him from time to time. Perhaps he could still be saved.

He looked at the time. 2:55AM. If he got caught reading that late at night, he would no doubt be executed. He turned off his flashlight and hid the zine under a loose board on the floor. ‘Not today’, he thought. ‘Not today’.

He didn’t take his pills that night.


	2. Keep running

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here he was, bleeding in the desert, his life in Jaehyun’s hands.

He was acutely aware of the sweat dripping down his neck and disappearing inside his shirt. All he could hear was his heartbeat thumping in his ears and the sound his own feet made when they hit the sand. His shirt was soaked in blood and he could feel a sharp pain in his abdomen every time he moved, but he couldn’t stop. He had to keep running.

That’s what Killjoys always said to each other: keep running. Even when your legs feel heavy and it takes twice the effort to take a single step. Even when you have nowhere to go and you’re just praying you’ll find something, somewhere that will serve as shelter for the night. Even when you’ve just found out your childhood best friend is the man who has been trying to kill you for months.

He should’ve expected this. Jaehyun – who went by Yoonoh now – was always very vocal about his desire to cleanse the Zones. But nothing could’ve prepared him for the moment he saw who was under that mask.

He had been hunting for batteries near the abandoned factories of Zone Six when his bag was shot right out of his hand. Yoonoh was alone – as he always was – but his aim was better than any Drac’s. Yuta never got scared – not after the things he saw when he was leaving Batt City – but the sight of Yoonoh’s broad shoulders and clown mask was enough to make any Killjoy tremble.

The shootout lasted until sunset, with both of them dodging every blast the other shot at him. They were both panting by the time the wind started blowing and the sun painted the sky red and orange and pink. Yoonoh lowered his ray gun for a split second and Yuta took that chance to get closer and take it from him. He should’ve finished him off in that moment, but he had always felt the need to know everything, even before he hit the red line. He had to see the face behind the clown mask. He wasn’t expecting to see his best friend looking back at him in fear.

In that moment, he couldn’t move. He felt like he was glued to the desert sand, his limbs too heavy and his heart rapidly sinking to the floor. The look on Jaehyun’s face was similar to when they snuck out after curfew to explore the Outskirts. He looked like a scared little kid. Not a heartless killer.

He was brought to reality when Jaehyun plunged a knife into his abdomen, the pain too sudden and too intense. He looked down in disbelief. He could see the blood pouring out of his wound and he was reminded of when Jaehyun punched a bully for him when they were ten years old. He was always so kind. So kind, threatening and fighting people for him. Maybe he wasn’t doing it out of kindness, it occurred to him in that moment. Maybe he had a taste for it.

“Jaehyun?” He whispered. Recognition flashed in Jaehyun’s eyes as he took a step backwards. He stood there for what felt like an eternity, staring at Yuta through wide, tear-filled eyes.

Their life together flashed before Yuta in that moment. He remembered that time they got drunk together and Jaehyun told him about all the scars he had from his father’s punishments. He remembered that time Jaehyun found him crying in a school bathroom, the day after his mother overdosed on Battery Acid. He remembered the last time they saw each other, when Jaehyun joined S/C/A/R/E/C/R/O/W and Yuta made the decision to leave the city and try his luck away from BL/ind’s ruthless claws. He remembered the way he clung to Jaehyun, begging him not to become one of them, and the cold look on Jaehyun’s face when he told Yuta to let go of him.

And now here he was, bleeding in the desert, his life in Jaehyun’s hands.

“Run.” Jaehyun said, his voice hoarse.

So he ran.

He ran past the abandoned factories and right into the Death Valley. He ran until his legs were numb and heavy and his eyes were threatening to close. He ran until he knew he couldn’t keep going.

He didn’t know where he was running to. He had no one, no one who could patch him up and nurse him back to help. He was all alone, like he had been for years.

He allowed himself to fall gently to the ground. It was time to stop running.

‘There are worse ways to die’ he thought, as he looked at the stars one last time before he closed his eyes and felt himself plunge into darkness.

-

He woke up in an unknown place, with a pair of doe eyes looking at him from above.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Turns out I can't write fighting scenes.
> 
> Hmu on twitter @lalisadyke


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